Where the Road Takes Us
by WayfaringTurtle
Summary: Ino Yamanaka never thought that they'd break her like this, but they did. She had sacrificed absolutely everything for him, to the point of no return only to be humiliated when she needed him the most. A strong woman now a mere shell of who she once was, finds an odd comfort with her mysterious yet insufferable Uber driver. From the looks of it, he doesn't mind her company either.


**Authors Note:** Hello friends! This was an idea that I came up with one day that I thought would be cool enough to entertain. Figured it would be a good place to start, and hopefully I'll learn from here on in. I'm pretty new to this whole thing, and publishing my work online was a bit scary for me, but it's the only way I'll get better. So if you guys enjoyed it or have anything to say, please leave a review, and if you really dig it then perhaps a follow/favorite. I'd appreciate it!

Naturally, it's going to be a rather dark AU fic. There will be many explicit scenes, and may be disturbing for some. Read at your own discretion!

* * *

 **Prologue**

Rough, calloused hands screamed in agony as they latched onto the flimsy polyethylene material, trying desperately to push past the searing pain. Her legs had long since turned numb, now nothing more than a wobbling mess that had somehow managed to get her home safely, the excruciating hike only having a few minor hiccups. Her arms weren't fairing any better, both filled with hellfire that scorched her skin in a way she had never thought possible. All of this was fueling her desire to cry out in pain, yet she refrained. She was but human after all, unable to stifle the odd whimper every now and then.

Slugging her way into the entrance of her home, she clumsily kicked the door behind her closed and was greeted with nothing but absolute darkness. She paid it no mind as she inched her way to the kitchen relying solely on her muscle memory. This was after all a road she traveled far too often. Soon enough she felt the familiar hardwood material through the soles of her worn out shoes, and let out a drawn sigh. Finally, she was able to relinquish her grasps on her beasts of burden, letting the heavy bags land on the kitchen floor with a soft, yet satisfying thud that echoed through rather empty looking home.

 _Light._

 _Need Light._

She leaned over her kitchen counter, fumbling around for a switch. Almost immediately the soft glow of the accent-lamps met her eyes, an inviting splash of warmth that barely illuminated the kitchen space. Extremely dim, but it was just the right amount of light for her to know whether or not she was going to trip and break her neck. Her accident-prone nature had made her wary of her surroundings ever since she had broken her arm last summer, doing the _exact_ same thing she was doing right now.

Confident that imminent death was nowhere to be seen, she let herself close her eyes and unwind for a moment. A deep breath filled her lungs with much needed air, and almost immediately she found her body start to relax. Without much thought, she began to massage the palm of her hands, a decision she almost immediately regret making. The fire that had plagued fingers moments ago returned with vigor, a pain so intense that it brought out tears threatening to spill. She shook it off to the best of her ability and bent over, picking out the contents within the mess of bags that were sprawled across the kitchen floor.

She absolutely loathed this part of the week. Groceries quickly became the bane of her existence the moment she was given her rather _unique_ circumstances. It just so happened that the store she needed to shop at housed very particular produce, which apparently from a quality perspective was ranked second to none, not like she could tell the difference to begin with. It seemed that what the other, _much closer_ supermarkets had to offer wouldn't suffice. Instead, she found herself hiking for a store that was an absolute journey to get to, just far enough for any sensible person to look at her and realize that she had absolutely no business going there in the first place.

The market was rather isolated for its location and as a result would primarily cater to the locals, people who knew each other well enough to spot any outsider that dare enter their little community. The first time she graced them with her presence she had practically burst through the doors drenched in sweat, swearing up a storm, literally inches away from scaring the life out of some of the older folk at the checkout counter. Naturally, the whole _first impressions_ thing completely flew out of the window, but as time went on they started to learn more and more about their mysterious new shopper. It was a slow process, one that took multiple visits, but eventually everyone at the store realized her predicament, whether she wanted them to or not. To have someone like her hike a long and foreboding journey for miles on end, _on foot_ no less, to carry bags upon bags of heavy groceries, well it was enough to make anyone crabby really. It was a journey no sensible person would ever endure by choice.

And choice… well that was something Ino Yamanaka simply didn't have.

Sighing, she straightened her back, wincing at the flurry of cracks that went down her spine. It was at times like these where she genuinely felt too old for this nonsense, which in itself was ludicrous considering that fact that she had barely touched her early twenties. Not like it really meant anything however, since there was still the glaring issue of her spine sounding like a bag of pop rocks whenever she even thought of doing something more daring than the casual jog.

She took a step back and looked over the items that now occupied her kitchen counter, silently admiring the way she organized everything into neat little categories. Instead of patting herself on the back after a long day's work however, she winced at the sight before her. Instead of groceries, all she saw were dollar signs being thrown away. It was to be expected however, considering that nearly everything she had to buy were plastered with buzzwords. Things like _organic, fair-trade,_ and _non-GMO_ were literally sprawled across every single wrapper she laid her eyes on. The beauty of all this was the fact that she didn't really care for any of these things. The only thing she cared about was just how steep these things were on her wallet.

A single trip to this particular market a few miles down south ended up costing her hundreds of dollars a week, when she could have shopped at the market down the road that not only saved her spine, but would let her come home with a wallet that wasn't completely empty. This was money that she had to work tooth and nail for. Literally hundreds of dollars on food she wasn't even going to eat.

Shaking her head, she wobbled her way down the corridor. The floor beneath her showing her sore feet no remorse whatsoever. The only thing bringing her comfort was the thought of a scorching hot bath to melt away the day's problems, and then maybe if she was lucky, she'd slip into a comatose so that she didn't have to deal with any of this ever again.

She reached for the doorknob to her bathroom, but paused midway when something caught the corner of her eye. Curious, she turned her head to see that her bedroom door down the hall was left slightly ajar, bleeding light out of the small sliver left open.

 _He should be in bed by now._

It didn't take much to convince herself to satiate her bubbling curiosity before taking that shower she so desperately desired. Wordlessly she wobbled over to her bedroom door, debating whether or not to just barge right in or have the decency to knock first.

She did neither the moment she peeked through the crack of the door, her mind working overtime trying to figure out what she was looking at.

… _No_

It was the only thought running through her head as her eyes darted back and forth trying to make sense of the image, and what a terrible image it was.

There she witnessed the sight of two oh-so familiar bodies clashed together, grinding in a wild haze of lust and passion, a sight as haunting as it was beautiful. A part of her already knew that her mind would refuse to forget the scene in front of her, no matter how much her heart begged.

It was the way their skin glistened against the pale moonlight that seeped through the curtains of their bedroom window, the thin film of sweat that coated their bodies glimmering against the midnight moon. It was the way they hitched their breath whenever they found their rhythm, the way her hair would bounce whenever he thrust into her. The way her breasts would grind against his chiseled chest, her flushed and rosy skin against his pale porcelain.

It seemed that ripping her heart to shreds when she was at her absolute lowest wasn't good enough, here they were looking so _fucking beautiful_ doing it.

Ino Yamanaka stared, it was the only thing she could do after her initial shock.

The sight of both of their bodies tangled as lovers in the bedroom of her own home wasn't something she ever thought she'd witness, yet here she was. Her tears welling in her eyes threatening to spill onto the hardwood below, her heart full of lead that sank further and further down into her gut as she continued to watch the scene in front of her unfold with morbid fascination.

" _Sasuke…"_

The way her boyfriend's name rolled off of her best friend's tongue was beautiful, every time she thrust her hips forward she would purr it into his ear, a name that should have been reserved for Ino and Ino alone. The way he grabbed her rear out of pure desperation every time she whispered it to him made Ino want to rip her hair out. The subtle giggles and laughter that made their way through their fierce love making made her want to break down to tears.

This was a nightmare.

It was pathetic, but she couldn't find it in herself to hate her best friend. Something in her heart wouldn't let her. Maybe it was the fact that she had grown up with Sakura Haruno since childhood, perhaps it was why instead of slitting her throat, she settled to only watch while her best friend was having her way with the love of her life.

Three years.

They've been dating for three long, turbulent years where Ino has sacrificed absolutely everything she had to please Sasuke Uchiha. Her friends were gone, her ability to be independent and enjoy the little things in life was nothing more than a distant memory, and any prospects of a solid future were burned to ashes because she chose the Uchiha over everything she held so dear in a life that felt like ages ago. Christ she had to face the risk of fainting on the side of the road on a weekly basis because Sasuke would refuse to eat anything else.

Didn't it mean _anything_?

Here she was, working so hard to make sure Sasuke Uchiha got what he wanted, here she was working day and night because menial labor was just _so_ beneath him to even contemplate, here she was with her once beautiful and delicate hands now marred with callouses and scars, here she was riddled with fatigue and stress thanks to the ungodly work schedule her snivelling boss would give her every single week. Here she was, despite her terrible pay, to support the two of them while Sasuke did absolutely nothing to support her.

Ino's lower lip trembled at the sight. The feeling of absolute dread and agony so unbearable she was convinced that her heart was just about to give out at any given moment. Here she was, witnessing everything she has sacrificed for the both of them going to shit right in front of her very eyes.

Her balance starting to waiver and her knees starting to feel as if they were crumbling beneath her feet, she haphazardly leaned against the wall beside her. She held her breath in order to fight back the familiar pull of unconsciousness. She didn't want to faint, not here, and yet she found herself unable to tear her eyes away from the horrific scene in front of her.

Too tired to move and too tired to think, every thought of hers became nothing more than a jumbled mess, acting more as white noise than any form of tangible thought. As if something was possessing her, she held her ground and kept staring, no matter how much her heart was begging her to walk away.

She was going to watch the love of her life, cum on her best friend's perfect little face.

 _Why?_

It was the only thought running through her mind over and over again, like some sort of broken record. A sick, twisted mantra that wouldn't let up. Was she simply not good enough? Were her sacrifices not good enough, or were they just not enough to please Sasuke?

She shook her head at the flurry of emotions, trying her best to ignore the vicious self-loathing that was welling deep within her. She couldn't help but blame herself for what was happening in her bedroom.

She opened her eyes once more, only to feel a pang of anguish ripple through her very core.

There Sasuke stood, easily towering over the pink haired vixen who was on her knees ready to comply. Her body was facing away from Ino, giving her a clear view of her arched back. Her rear pointed outwards, her chest puffed out, all of it just to give Sasuke the eye-candy he needed to finish the deed.

 _Not far now._

The morbid thought made her sick, and she desperately wanted to flee before she witnessed the act, but her legs were planted firmly in place. If she tried to move, then she would surely collapse.

She trailed her eyes all over Sakura's body. From her delicate, manicured feet to her surprisingly voluptuous rear, to those back dimples of hers that she would always find the need to brag about. She raised her arms to pull her shoulder length pink hair back, her body now shying away from Sasuke ever so slightly, giving Ino a peek of the side of her chest, riddled in hickeys of all shapes and sizes surrounding her rosy-pink nipple.

With her hands still holding her hair back, she allowed Sasuke all the room he needed to finish on her face.

She was perfect.

He was perfect.

They belonged together.

It was obvious now, and painfully so.

Wordlessly, Ino watched as Sasuke shot his load at Sakura. Without as much as a squeak, she took it all in, catching whatever she could with her open mouth, most of it coating her delicate face. Even from this angle, Ino could tell that Sakura was grinning, probably holding back a laugh as Sasuke tried his best to control his spray, inevitably missing and spilling the rest of his seed on the hardwood floor beneath.

Ino's heart shattered.

Closing her eyes, she willed her body to move. After all the show was over, wasn't it? Didn't fate have its cruel fun already? Whatever compelled her to watch the entire show got what it wanted, and now there wasn't anything left to do, so why wasn't she able to move yet?

Ino Yamanaka, the one and only, thoroughly betrayed and humiliated by the two people she held dearest. Surely that was traumatic enough, wasn't it?

She opened her eyes when she heard a giggle.

Evidently not.

Ino was met with a sight she would never forget.

There the pink-haired vixen was, her ass high in the air with absolutely everything exposed for Ino to see. The same tongue that had just pleasured Ino's love was now gliding across the filthy hardwood floor to clean up the rest of Sasuke's mess. Ino heard Sakura let out a small giggle, as she slowly went back on her knees with her mouth wide open. Ino watched as Sasuke ran his fingers through her pink hair as he recorded her with his cellphone.

" _Wider."_

She felt a pang of pain as she heard Sasuke's command. She watched as Sakura let out a small giggle in response, opening her mouth wider for Sasuke who was now towering over her almost triumphantly. His cellphone was practically inside of her mouth at this point, with Sakura twisting her tongue playing with the contents in her mouth.

Ino had to hold back a gasp as she saw Sasuke spit into her best friend's mouth, Sakura taking it it all with stride and a giggle. Not long after, the command to swallow was given out by Sasuke, to which Sakura obeyed without as much as a flinch.

Ino was about to retch, not due to the nature of the act itself but by just how _intimate_ they were knowing that they were having an affair together. Did they not think of her _at all_ during any of this?

A flurry of unwelcome questions ravaged her mind, questions she knew she didn't want the answers to.

 _Does he think of her while we're together…?_

 _How many videos does he have of her…?_

 _How long has this been going on for…?_

She shut her eyes tight.

It seemed that fate was finally satisfied, as she found the strength to move once more. Without much thought, Ino shut the door in front of her and began to walk away, ignoring the surprised gasps from the two.

"What was that?"

"Probably the wind."

She ignored their voices and pulled out her phone.

A ride.

What she needed right now was a ride. She need to go somewhere, anywhere to escape from this hell, her own home. She pulled out her phone and haphazardly went through the screens without much thought, ignoring the prompts her phone gave her with a careless swipe of the thumb. She ignored the tears that hit the screen as she confirmed her fare, silently hoping that she had enough in the bank to escape from this torture.

Sasuke had been spending a considerable amount of money from their joint account, for the life of her she didn't know what compelled him to spend her savings like that, but she figured it would have been for a good reason. She had helplessly watched as the somewhat admirable figure in her bank account slowly dwindled down to nothing, her partner having absolutely nothing to say about it, and Ino never had the nerve to ask.

Sakura too, much like Sasuke wasn't working at the moment, so whenever she dragged Ino along her spontaneous shopping sprees, she'd always say she found someone that was willing to get her anything she wanted. Ino had always assumed that it was either an extremely generous boyfriend, or a family member she hadn't met yet.

Now it was starting to make sense, and it made her sick to her stomach.

" _ **I-INO?!"**_

The ear-piercing shriek from behind didn't sway her in the slightest. Ino chose to instead ignore her best friend's startled cry and keep staring at her phone. She was fighting a war in her head, a brutal battle desperately pushing the feeling of absolute heartbreak aside. She needed to, at least for now. She needed to be strong, especially in front of _them._

"Real twisted sense of humor you know that Sakura? Don't even-"

Sasuke's voice was enough to bring back the tears, but somehow she managed to keep them from spilling. Like a mantra, she kept telling herself to keep her composure, to not show any weakness. She had to show them that they hadn't completely broken her.

What a stupid fucking lie.

From her peripherals, she could see that Sasuke had stopped dead in his tracks to stare at Ino, probably with the same face Sakura was making.

She turned her eyes slowly to look at the two directly, noting that the both of them were still completely exposed, Sakura still with that glaze of cum on her face, and Sasuke still clad in those sweatpants of his that hung far too low for Ino's liking.

The sight would have been enjoyable, incredibly sexy even, had she not walked in on all of this. Now the sight of him revolted her, so much so that she had to choke back the bile that was threatening to rise in her throat.

How is Sakura going to play this off?

Ino stared at them, thanking whatever the hell it was that was giving her the strength not to break down and start throwing things. Behind her bullshit strong woman façade, she was an absolute mess, clinging onto her sanity by a mere thread.

"Ino… please just listen." Sakura tried.

Ino said nothing and let a tension laced silence follow suit, leaving a desperate Sakura in her wake. A moment of silence passed, then two, and yet Sakura failed to make a sound.

"You said listen. I'm listening."

The nude girl stared with her jaw hung low, taken aback by the sheer coldness of Ino's tone, her tears now flowing freely. Whether it was the guilt of her actions finally seeping through, or her not knowing how to react, Ino didn't quite know, but now the pink haired girl was crying in front of her as if _Ino_ was the one that had done something wrong.

She turned her gaze to Sasuke, who had a similar look plastered on his face minus the tears. He seemed more shocked than upset, something akin to a deer staring at headlights. Ino couldn't tell what was going through his head, but it was clear that the look on his face was probably more due to the fact that he had gotten caught than actually feeling any sort of remorse.

Had she seen even an ounce of guilt somewhere in those dark eyes of his, perhaps she wouldn't feel so humiliated.

The sudden ringtone in her hands snapped her gaze away from them.

 **Unknown: Guess who's ripping through your neighbourhood! Ya Uber driver! I'm waiting outside!**

She stared blankly at the text, not even bothering to question it. The only thing she wanted to do right now was to leave as soon as possible. She quickly went back to the Uber application, taking note of the driver's contact photo. She couldn't help but stare at the ferocious bedhead and the carefree grin he had on his face. The kid couldn't have been older than her, yet he looked so childish, it was almost laughable had Ino not been in her suicidal mindset.

 _Naruto Uzumaki… what an odd name._

"Ino, l-look we can explain… there's actually- "

"Shut. Up. Sakura!" Sasuke barked.

Ino looked at them with mild interest, noting how shocked Sakura seemed with his sudden outburst. Sasuke on the other hand kept his face as indifferent as possible, casually staring at Ino as if they were all just a group of wonderful friends deciding on what to do next.

"We fucked." Sasuke stated.

Ino felt her heart break in two. She didn't expect him to be this blunt about it. A part of her loved that about him, he wasn't afraid to speak his mind. It was at least somewhat admirable, although she would never have expected herself to be on the receiving end like this.

"Do you regret it?" She asked quietly. The feeling of hope in her stomach making her sick.

She didn't know why she asked, it's not like it mattered. The deed was done, and there was nothing that either of them could do to make things right. Whatever his answer was, it wouldn't mend Ino's broken heart, not by a long shot.

So instead of answering, Sasuke merely rolled his eyes at her.

She knew what that meant, he wasn't trying to break her down further at least, it was merely his way of saying that he didn't know what to say. And to Ino, that was the same as saying that he didn't really give a fuck at all.

"We can work the details out." Sasuke stated simply, eyeing Ino.

She simply stared at him, flicking her eyes over at Sakura who was staring at her with a steady stream of tears still cascading down her cheeks.

Surely he didn't think that she'd be so forgiving about this, did he?

"What does that even mean Sasuke?" She found herself asking, surprised at just how hoarse her voice was. She was really starting to get tired from all of this, and the last thing they needed to see was just how much they had gotten to her.

Sasuke however seemed to have his finger right on the pulse, noticing just how dejected Ino looked. In a surprising show of class, he decided not to say anything about it. Instead he kept his eyes levelled with Ino, completely ignoring the pink haired girl that was crying beside him. Something in him changed, his posture straightened, his stance widened.

He was confident, Ino realized. Sasuke had scoped out Ino's vulnerability, and now he was going in for the kill.

"You're not leaving me, the both of us know that." Sasuke stated simply.

Ino stood there, dumbfounded.

"You love me too much." Sasuke continued. "And you know that I love you too. This night of passion with her was a one-time thing, write it off, and Sakura, go home." He told her, ignoring the look of surprise on the pink haired girl's face.

 _Unbelievable, the fucking gall._

"We're over." Ino stated simply, ignoring the looks of surprise plastered on both of their faces. "I was an idiot for letting it go on, it's not even the fact that you're fucking her on the side." Ino stared at Sakura, who was choking back tears. "It's the fact that this relationship was problematic from the start, the fact that you're lying to me right in front of my face, and the fact that I sacrificed so much for something so little. I was just a fucking idiot Sasuke. This was bound to happen sooner or later, with or without you fucking her."

She turned and glared at Sakura, who flinched the moment their eyes met.

"How long has this been going on for? I just want to know." Ino stated, her voice dangerously low. Whatever sadness she was going through moments ago was now replaced with newfound fury, her voice was now razor sharp, a mere hair away from a growl. Sakura seemed to have picked up on this, because she slowly started to back away from Ino until she found herself against the living room wall, Ino mere inches away from her.

Sakura couldn't help but stare at Sasuke like a cornered animal, who merely spectated the confrontation. Her lower lip began to quiver once more as she started to choke back tears. "I- I don't know Ino, I just- "

"Enough." Ino demanded, her face getting dangerously close to her ear. "How. Long. _Sakura_?"

That seemed to be the final nail in the coffin for her, as she broke into tears yet again, choking back sobs as she struggled to look Ino in the eye. "T-two months Ino, ever since that c-coffee meet up." She choked, wiping her nose with her hand. "You were sick that day and we went ahead anyways and then one thing led to another and... I-I'm so sorry Ino." She screamed, dropping to her knees.

Ino stared at her weeping form, and with that, turned around and exited her home without sparing them another glance. She needed to be strong for this, any signs of weakness, and she knew that Sasuke would do what he does best and manipulate his way through to her, or at least try to.

Of course it was that day.

They had all planned to go for coffee but Ino ended up getting a bad case of the flu. She had asked Sasuke to bring home some cough medicine and some pain relievers to get rid of the migraine she had, and hopefully just spend some time with her afterwards, only for him not to come home until midnight claiming that he got side tracked.

So while Ino was vomiting everything that went down her throat, Sasuke was out drinking coffee with Sakura, eventually screwing her senseless.

That was humiliating.

Was this why her co-workers would give her looks whenever she brought Sasuke up? Did they all know about Sasuke and Sakura's affair, and decided it'd be best not to tell her? Did they think that she'd find out herself?

This time, Ino was serious.

She was done the suffering, staying strong be damned.

No career despite her accolades, no chance of ever getting anything higher than minimum wage, not even a boyfriend she could spend time with without her having to worry about him screwing her best friend.

She was tired, both mentally and physically.

Perhaps... perhaps it wasn't worth it. None of it was.

She opened the front door and stepped outside, taking a deep breath of the ice-cold air to calm her nerves. Tonight seemed to be particularly cold, and it seemed that it was only getting colder as time went on, but it was nothing new considering the autumn season. Though truth be told, it was starting to feel a lot more like winter than anything. The nights were getting longer, the days shorter, and the wind-chill was the worst it's ever been if her memory served her right.

Her body was getting goose bumps and her teeth were beginning to chatter, but she could barely feel any of it. Her entire body felt numb, yet she stayed frozen in place despite every fiber of her being screaming at her that she'd catch a cold, or worse, freeze to death in front of her own home.

 _Fuck them._

 _I was so wrong._

 **HOOOOOONK**

The blaring sound of a car horn nearly scared the skin off of her body. Ino let out an undignified yelp as she stumbled over her own two feet, avoiding a painful face-plant with the concrete beneath her by landing on her ankle, not that it hurt any less.

Growling in pain, she snapped her head towards the source of the sound, the culprit being a black sedan parked not ten feet away from her. She glared at the vehicle, noticing that whoever was driving the damn thing was fumbling around the dashboard, trying to find something or another.

She let out a scoff as she glared at the car. The old Toyota Camry looked out of place almost immediately thanks to the array of luxury cars parked right outside her driveway, comfortable beside houses Ino was willing to bet were just as expensive.

Her eyes bolted back to the family sedan, eyeing the driver slowly opening his door. Ino couldn't help but frown at the ridiculously bright smile and equally obnoxious hairstyle. The warm laughter coming from him probably wasn't geared _at_ her, but nonetheless she found her mood souring even further, something she would have sworn was impossible not five minutes prior.

It seemed that the resemblance between the driver's photo and real self was uncanny.

The man in question vaulted over and sat on the hood of the car, earning a loud, rustic squeak from one of the tires. The car tilted far more than it should have, tire just inches away from being completely submerged by the fender. Ino didn't need to be an expert to know that this wasn't exactly a feature the old Camry had to offer.

She merely watched as her driver crossed his legs, getting comfortable as he stared right at her. He pulled out his phone and turned on the flash, waving it over his head frantically as if she hadn't noticed the idiot sitting not ten feet away from her.

"Miss Yaman-akay? Yama- Yam-a-nayka… whatever your ride is here!" he all but screamed.

Despite her crippling self-loathing and borderline suicidal mindset, the feeling of absolute embarrassment managed to seep through the agony in her chest, far beyond the overwhelming depression she was drowning in. The last thing she wanted to do was make all of this public, and this idiot with the voice of a roaring lion didn't help the situation one bit.

So, not only was her heart broken and her will to live completely shattered, now the gods decided to test her by sending her a tumor with a driver's license.

As she had previously suspected, it was clear that the kid couldn't possibly have been that much older than Ino, hell she was willing to bet they were the exact same age. Not a lot of people in her age group were awake this late, especially during the school year. The fact that he was actually picking up fares in the dead of night completely alone was something worth raising a brow at.

Fuck. She forgot to check the reviews on this particular driver. She had made it into a habit to practically screen whoever the poor bastard was that had her as a client. Her wary nature was fuelled primarily by her mistrust with the people in this godforsaken city. That, and the fact she was paying a complete stranger who may or may not even be qualified to drive themselves around, let alone another passenger.

She was distracted, and now she was dealing with someone that was clearly a sociopath. How else would she explain that atrocious neon-orange hoodie peeking through that black jacket of his? It certainly had elements of 'deranged serial killer' written all over it, not that she'd be surprised since this _was_ New York after all. There wasn't exactly a shortage of the insane.

It was either that or the poor bastard didn't know wearing such a hideous color was a walking war crime.

"Oi, sorry for scaring you, just thought it'd be funny y'know? Not a lot of people need rides so late, so keeping myself entertained well-"

She frowned, making his bright-as-day smile falter slightly.

"I'm uh, sorry, seriously. I am. Do you still want to get in…?"

Ino stood there, crossing her arms.

"…Right. Got it. Don't worry about it, cancellation fee is on me, I'll uh... just get going." He mumbled, scratching the back of his head as he uncrossed his legs.

" _Way to go moron."_

The driver obviously thought Ino wouldn't hear his angry mumbling.

She in turn let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding and began her walk towards the car, earning a wary glance from the driver that was _still_ perched on the hood of the vehicle. Before long, she was standing directly beside the beaten-up family sedan. She opened the passenger-side door and sat down, glaring directly at the back of her driver through the windshield.

It was obvious that this kid was her only chance of escape for the night. Hailing a traditional cab would cost her a pretty penny for those rat bastards to even _consider_ going to Long Island in the first place. A large part of the astronomical fees were due to the prices for basic fare being hiked last summer. The state had figured it'd be making more money if they hiked up the already exorbitant rates. Despite the public outcry, cab companies were given a license to steal.

Hence, the birth of this miraculous "Uber' concept.

Although judging by her driver, Ino wasn't too sure if this was an end-all-be-all solution. The moment she had closed the door beside her, she was bombarded with doubt. A part of her was screaming at her to abort the mission, telling her that she was entering dangerous territory and could very well end up in some ditch at the edge of the highway.

Alas, she had already sat down, and it seemed that comfort would always outweigh paranoia.

Besides, wasn't she planning on doing something similar anyways?

The morbid part of her mused over the idea. She found it funny how she was sitting here worrying about whether or not she was going to be murdered when only a few minutes ago she was wracking her brain trying to think of a way to commit _the_ most awe-inspiring, and preferably painless suicide of all time.

 _Either I do it myself or this buffoon does it for me. It's a win/win._

Sure, maybe jumping off of her favorite bridge like she had originally planned would be ruled out, but she had the utmost confidence that her driver would have something equally as interesting, as long as it wasn't too painful. Considering the idiot though, she wasn't too sure.

The very same idiot that was _still_ sitting on the hood of his car staring at Ino while she lulled over the different, _creative,_ possibilities her mind came up with. Hell half of them weren't even that bad.

She caught her drivers wary glance flick between her and the steering wheel. It didn't take long before he awkwardly slid off the hood of the car and sleuthed his way to the drivers seat.

Ino couldn't help but feel bad for just how awkward she managed to make the poor bastard, but then again almost giving her a heart attack after getting cheated on, not _seconds_ prior, well that wasn't exactly something she'd ever really forgive this fool for.

The moment the engine sputtered to life, all the tension seemingly vanished. Ino couldn't help but stare at her driver as he brought back that goofy looking grin on his face, fastening his seat belt while doing so. His smile quickly turned into a slight frown however, as he struggled with the dashboard holster in front of him.

"I'm Naruto. I'm your driver for the night." He mumbled as he fidgeted with the plastic contraption holding his phone. "Give me a minute here yeah? I never get used to putting my phone back into this thing, you'd think with the kind of money they make they'd at least give us some decent holsters eh?"

No response.

* * *

Naruto Uzumaki frowned upon hearing silence as his answer.

He didn't want to aggravate the woman any further, so he continued fidgeting with the device in his hands. He managed to finally force the iPhone into its holster with a satisfying snap, silently praying that he hadn't broken anything else. He turned his head to see if his mysterious passenger had anything to say, but it wasn't like she would give him a pat on the back or anything, no that'd be a bit _too_ optimistic even for him.

A quick glance to his right showed that no, she was still busy tapping away at her phone without a care.

Usually he didn't mind this sort of thing, rude passengers weren't exactly out of the ordinary for his line of work. Still, the attitude she was giving him was rubbing him the wrong way. The whole silent treatment thing was new to him, and he was honestly wondering if this was meant to piss him off or was actually a blessing in disguise.

 _What's she doing?_

His curiosity got the better of him, as he found himself slowly inching towards his mysterious client trying to be as inconspicuous as he could.

Turns out she was looking at some Uber profile.

Wait. She was looking at _his_ Uber profile.

His breath caught in his throat as he stared at his goofy profile picture staring right back at him, almost condescendingly. A part of him was fuming, he was really starting to regret taking that photo right now.

He was starting to get nervous, something about this situation didn't feel right.

As if on cue, the blonde woman beside him caught his gaze, making him flinch. He turned his head in haste, trying his best to keep his casual composure. Not like it mattered, he could practically _feel_ the woman continue to stare as he looked past the windshield, eyeing literally anything except for her.

It was getting harder and harder not to get freaked out by the other person in his car.

 _I'm about to get shanked._

He quickly darted his eyes back over to her, only to find her _still_ staring at him.

 _I'm abso-fucking-lutley about to get shanked._

He darted his eyes over to the outside world once more, finding himself staring at an array of rather expensive looking cars parked further down the road. Almost immediately he forgot about the creepy woman beside him as he admired the different makes and models, practically drooling at the sight.

It was painfully obvious that this neighbourhood wasn't made for the likes of him, and it always made him feel weird whenever he had to drive though this part of the island with his beaten-to-hell sedan. It certainly wasn't anything special, and sure it's seen better days, but anyone that knew him personally knew just how reliable the damn thing was. If it managed to survive _his_ inhumane abuse, then it was obvious that whatever the Japanese were doing, it was working.

Still, having a Bentley wouldn't hurt…

A large sigh escaped his passenger's lips, ripping him away from his pleasant thoughts. It seemed as if his mysterious client was finished doing whatever the hell she was so occupied with, except now she had this look on her face he couldn't quite place.

He tightened his grip on the steering wheel, waiting for something to come out of her mouth.

His mind was now working overtime trying to figure out why she was glaring daggers at the side of his face moments prior.

Maybe she was checking him out?

Aah, wishful thinking, that couldn't be it.

Unless it was the innocent honk scare of his...

Sure, the honk right in front of her ear was probably unnecessary, but...

 _Shit._

The more he thought about it, the more he realized that there really was no way to explain why he decided to be a total dickhead and scare the hell out of a potential client. With that disheartening thought, he prepared for the worst. A negative review? Sure that'd really fuck him over, but he deserved it.

 _That's what I get for trying to be friendly in this fuckin' city it looks like._

He peered over once more and noted that she was now staring blankly at an enlarged version of his profile picture.

Jesus Christ this woman was as nerve-racking as she was creepy.

"So the signals pretty terrible here… Ino, I think that's your name." He mumbled, eyeing her carefully, Ino paid him no mind however, as she continued to cross-examine his profile picture as if it was the weather report, completely ignoring the fact that he was right there.

"Fuck this is weird." He muttered, staring at her phone. "Listen, I dropped my phone a couple of times and the thing won't pick up anything anymore, so I have no idea where you're headed until we reach the actual city where the signal is crystal, you know assuming that's… where you'll…"

The doe-eyed look Ino gave him really threw him off.

"Er… right so I mean uh… where are you … going?"

"Just drive."

The simple command was as cold as it was blunt, and it served to do absolutely nothing but confuse the hell out of him. Maybe it was the look that he was giving her, but she managed to sense his confusion and let out a long sigh. Instead of a verbal explanation she just waved him off, signalling him to drive.

When the car didn't move, Ino let out yet another breath and stared at Naruto.

"I'm in the mood to just get my mind off things. Just drive around." She hissed,

She turned her head to stare out the window, only to find that the car _still_ hasn't moved. Growling in sheer annoyance, she turned to face her driver yet again only to find him staring at her as if she was insane.

That did not sit well with Ino what so ever.

"Why aren't we going?!" She hissed, close to lashing out at the poor bastard.

"Lady, you realize that there's a late-night premium eh? We're talking like a two-times multiplier, three if I'm lucky. Given that, _and_ the location of this nifty little Island of yours, you're going to be paying a hell of a lot of money to just _get your mind off things_. Ya' know? I'm just giving you some friendly advice."

She stared at him.

 _Fuck._

She was really starting to lose it, but then again considering the fact that she was battling a war of emotions right now she found it in herself to be just a tad bit forgiving.

That didn't change the fact that she was going to have to fork over a small fortune for this little escape of hers, but honestly what were her options? Her legs were still on fire thanks to her _grand_ return from the supermarket, and she sure as hell wasn't going to go back into the house again. A taxi didn't have any of those stupid multipliers, but with the abhorrent rates regarding distance, she was willing to bet that it would cost hell of a lot more than whatever Uber was going to charge her.

The only real, tangible question now was if she was able to afford _any_ of it.

If she didn't, then this idiot driver of hers would be none the wiser. If his phone had disconnected before her credit card company declined the transaction, then she was basically going to get a free ride anyways. If for some reason, she actually _did_ have the money, then she'd just be paying what she owed.

Really, the answer was pretty obvious. But was she willing to possibly scam this idiot out of a paycheck?

When her stone-cold expression didn't falter what so ever, Naruto decided that enough was enough. He would resort to his usual _go with the flow_ philosophy, it was probably hell of a lot safer than opening his mouth and risk getting clobbered. Besides, he was sure that she wouldn't mind spending a few extra dollars, considering the fact she was living _here_ of all places. He wasn't the type to complain about going home with a little extra in his pockets.

He turned the ignition and felt the engine roar to life for the second time, only for the passenger side door to open. He let out a dramatic groan as he slammed his head against the steering wheel in utter annoyance.

"Lady you're really busting my balls here. What, you changed your mind or some-" he stopped midway when he realized that someone from the outside had opened the door, and that someone else was glaring daggers at his late-night client.

"Uhm, can I… help you?" He found himself asking, utterly confused at the sight of an abnormally pale, shirtless man standing right outside of his car, literally inches away from his clients face.

Naruto frowned at the sight of the two. He didn't need to be a genius to know that things weren't exactly peachy at the moment, as if the tension-laced stare down they were having didn't make it painfully obvious.

He cursed his luck. Of course, his last fare of the day would have a dramatic flare to it. Nothing in his life was ever simple, was it?

The fine-china pale skin and meticulously styled jet black hair made the poor bastard look like a vampire. The fact that he was completely shirtless in the middle of a frigid night like this only confirmed his suspicions it seemed. He was about to comment, but decided that he already used last of his 'dickhead' points tonight on the mysterious and pouty blonde haired enigma that was Ino Yamanaka.

A brief moment of silence passed, one that was extremely painful for Naruto to bear.

"Do you people actually talk or is it just a Long Island thing to communicate through glares?" He asked, flinching when the two shot him the dirtiest look they could muster.

 _So much for comic relief Jesus Christ_.

He turned his head and looked out the window to his left, trying his best to ignore the two. He was seriously starting to pray that this little showdown of theirs would end soon.

No such luck.

After what felt like an eternity, Naruto found himself starting to fidget in his seat. He was getting antsy, and wanted nothing more than to drive home right about now, but he wasn't desperate enough to kick out a high-paying fare.

The silence in the car was suffocating, and he found himself tapping away at his steering wheel humming an extremely awkward and out of place tune to get his mind off of the duel that was happening inches away from him.

"Ino." Sasuke finally stated. "Get out of the car and let's go home. Now."

Naruto couldn't help but feel relieved that words were finally being exchanged, but he already had a bad feeling about this guy. Maybe it was his attitude or the way the bastard acted like a flashlight in the dark, he honestly didn't know.

He knew he needed to do something, but what could he possibly do? He's had his fair share of drama being a driver that's for sure, but he's never actually been _in_ any of these disputes. All of the fights he'd witnessed ended the moment he pulled up, since most people had the decency not to start a scene in front of a stranger. This was the first time some asshole actually had the audacity to open his door and start a fight with his client.

The best course of action, he reasoned, would be to go home and to forget about this fare. The money riding on this on the other hand, was telling him something completely different. Since the island was such a long way out, and this place was for _'rich cunts'_ as his friends so elegantly put it, nobody was willing to drive all the way here just to pick up a few fares. A side effect of this was that demand for drivers increased, and with nobody willing to deliver except for him and a small group of others, it was practically a license to print money if they were willing to deal with the long drive and usually unpleasant passengers.

Fares however were rare here since having a home in a place like this meant that you had enough cash to buy whatever you wanted, hell he was sure that some of these folks had enough money to buy out Kenya, alas it was never them that he was able to drive around. One of the unwritten rules here it seemed was having a car that was just as expensive as the house. Not only did all of the residents on this island have cars, but they had some of the nicest fucking cars Naruto had ever seen.

With all that being said, here he was dealing with one of the strangest, moodiest clients he's ever had the _pleasure_ of working with, accompanied with a vampire-looking bastard that was standing outside of his car half-naked, the two of them at each other's necks having a staring contest.

Naruto was starting to realize why nobody wanted to pick up fares here.

Go figure.

"Fuck. You. Sasuke."

Naruto couldn't help but let out a low whistle, earning a glare from the abnormally pale man. He couldn't help but look away, cursing under his breath about how weird all of this was.

"Sorry…I just wanted to, er, anyways dude, I gotta' clock out soon. So I mean, can we get a move on?" He asked hopefully, trying his best not to sound rude. The man in turn only glared at him.

It seemed that this entire fucking island did nothing but glare at things.

"Sure. Get her out of your car, and let's call it a night." Sasuke responded coldly, earning a frown from Naruto. "Or better yet let me take care of it, and you go home."

Something about his tone didn't sit right with him, and judging by the look of pure disgust radiating off the woman next to him, it was obvious that she didn't want to go anywhere either.

It was only when Sasuke grabbed Ino by the arm and dragged her out of the car did he realize that this situation was escalating quickly.

Fare be damned, it didn't look like this chick wanted anything to do with him.

Getting out of his car, he watched as Ino tried her hardest to get out of Sasuke's vice like grip. Even from here, Naruto could tell by the way Sasuke was yanking her around that it would surely leave a bruise in the morning. Ino, after a few failed attempts at escape, merely let herself get manhandled by him.

Naruto would have turned around and left it at that, leaving these island kids to their own nonsense, but fate had other plans it seemed.

He was emotional, to a fault apparently. He's always been told that he reacted with his heart instead of his head, and despite it landing him in all sorts of trouble, it was something he took silent pride in. He had a heart, and he was going to use it.

So when Ino gave Naruto one last look, a steady stream of tears and a look of absolute anguish marring her pretty face, it was painfully obvious what he had to do.

Acting on primal instinct alone, Naruto vaulted over the hood of his car, thanking god almighty that he didn't fall over and look like a complete tool this time around. The moment he landed on both of his feet, he broke off in a sprint, desperately trying to catch up before the bastard grabbing Ino made it inside the house.

With newfound energy, he managed to catch up within seconds, and without much thought, tackled Sasuke to the ground. Judging by the surprised yelp from the black haired teen, he hadn't been expecting it, and fucking hell neither did Naruto.

Before he knew it, the bastard had gotten to his feet and threw a punch at him, smashing him right in the temple. Naruto struggled to stand straight, his vision bleary and a massive migraine already beginning to form.

 _For fucks sake how hard does this fucker hit?!_

Somehow he managed to charge at Sasuke for the second time without falling over, allowing him just enough room to swipe his feet from under him and tackle him to the floor, _hard_. Seeing his advantage, he quickly mounted the vampire looking teen and started throwing punches without any form of restraint. He shoved his knees down as hard as he could to prevent Sasuke from being able to move his arms while he went to town on his downed opponent, and without much thought, slammed his elbow down on his nose, earning a pained scream from Sasuke.

The startled shriek from behind him broke him out of his rage-fueled beat down, as he found himself being thrown off the man beneath him.

Naruto was breathing heavily, rubbing his hands against the wetness beside his ears. He examined the palms of his hands, noting the crimson liquid slowly dripping down to the asphalt below, the smell of metal so strong it was practically intoxicating.

The bastard actually managed to punch him so hard that he was bleeding.

 _Fucking hell_ , he thought bitterly. He was only now starting to realize that everything sounded dull and muffled from his right ear.

 _I swear to god if this fucker made me deaf I'm going to…_

He glared at the person on the floor a few feet away from him, slightly satisfied with the pained moans escaping the man's throat.

Sasuke was in fetal position, with both of his hands on his face trying to remedy the pain. Even in the dim lighting, Naruto could see the trail of blood flowing freely down his face. He briefly took note of a girl rushing to his side, trying to mend the potentially broken nose while screaming at someone for something or another.

Regardless, he couldn't bring himself to care at the moment even if he wanted to. Right now he was battling consciousness, trying his hardest to shake off the tiredness slowly overcoming him. Shaking his head only seemed to make the pain worse however, as he clutched his scalp in pain. He could only imagine what the other bastard was going through. Shit he didn't want to break the fucker's nose or anything, but he'd be lying if he said that he felt bad about it.

He merely stared at the hunched over body on the floor writhing in pain. The woman beside him was now outright screaming at Naruto, so loud that his wounded ear was starting to ache, big time.

 _I liked the broad better when she was a mute, Jesus_.

He slowly got to his feet and started to hobble over to the two to apologize. Sure it'd be insincere but it'd be the right thing to do he figured. Besides, he was sure his ear would heal eventually, and judging from the trail of blood flowing freely from Sasuke's nostrils, he may have genuinely shattered the bastard's nose.

Naruto couldn't help but do a jig in his head. Now this _Sasuke_ character's picture perfect face was going to be marred with a crooked nose, serves the fucker right.

It was then that he noticed two things.

The girl beside Sasuke wasn't wearing any pants. The only thing protecting her decency was an over sized hoodie covering body, stopping just below her rear.

Secondly, more importantly in his opinion, the girl that was screaming at him wasn't the girl that was in his car. Her bright cotton candy pink hair stuck out like a sore thumb, and he was seriously wondering how he hadn't noticed it before.

Confused, he turned his head and found himself staring at an indifferent Ino Yamanaka, her arms crossed and her eyes boring into him. She didn't look at all like the crying woman reduced to tears from moments before, instead now she looked like she was merely curious at the sight before her, Naruto found himself getting angrier and angrier by the minute.

Did she not appreciate him busting his ear for the likes of her?

He grit his teeth and got up, albeit stumbling over and almost falling flat on his face the first few tries.

The pink haired girl turned around, noticing the stumbling driver and marched right up to him and violently yanked him around, earning a groan from the disoriented blonde. She took a hold of the collar of his hoodie and pulled his face down so that they were mere inches apart from each other.

"What the fuck is your problem?!" She shrieked without warning, ignoring the pained flinch she received as the blonde immediately covered his ear.

It was decided.

Naruto was absolutely done getting in trouble for the night. Breaking out into a fist fight in the middle of the job would probably cause more problems than he cared to admit, but he chose not to dwell on it too much as of right now. He was going to cross that bridge when he got to it. The fact that he was almost knocked out didn't sit too well with him either, and the last thing he needed was getting the final blow from some screaming pink haired broad that sounded like a screeching banshee.

He slapped her arms away as he stood up straight, trailing his eyes down to stare at the pink haired girl who was easily a few inches shorter than him. He briefly noted the color of her roots, not at all surprised that the secret to her flamboyant hair was just hair dye.

He then met her furious glare, her green eyes piercing through him. In any other situation, he would have been intimidated, but something about her made him step back.

Something on her face.

He squinted, noting the all too familiar smell of the substance.

 _Is that?_

 _No it can't be, looks like it though._

 _I heard these kids were freaky but…_

"Is that… cum... on your face?" he couldn't help but ask.

It seemed that the entire party had gone deathly quiet. Hell even the poor bastard on the floor that had been whimpering in agony stopped breathing all together.

A tension laced silence fell between them for the umpteenth time that night, laced with awkwardness. The adrenaline in Naruto's system was practically gone at this point, and he found himself holding back a hysteria-fueled laugh as he quickly mused over what transpired in the last half hour.

"Alright you know what, fuck y'all. My friends were right, fuck you islanders." He grunted, throwing up his middle finger at the pink haired girl in particular. "All of you are fucking weird man, I'm gone."

He made his way to his car and slammed the door shut, locking it twice to make sure he didn't let anymore of these _wonderful_ people fuck up his night any further. He quickly started tapping away at the cracked phone mounted to the dashboard, trying desperately to get some form of signal to get his GPS running so he can hurry home and forget all about this terrible, terrible night.

Damn his ear was hurting like a bitch now that the adrenaline was gone. The sharp ringing and rhythmic pulse he could feel was starting to worry him, the fact that he felt like he was underwater was also a pretty alarming sign.

Curiously, he looked at the side-view mirror, noting that the blonde girl had had gone inside leaving a frightened cum-stained girl and what he assumed was her lover on the floor writhing in pain.

So what exactly did that make Ino, Naruto wondered. What was this fight about exactly?

" _Where would you like to go?"_ His phone asked.

 _Thank fuck._ Never in his life did he find so much comfort in Siri.

Naruto started tapping away his home address, trying his best to find a route that didn't go through a pay toll. The blood sucking leeches really were getting out of hand, and Naruto's wallet wasn't able to keep up half the time.

" _Destination Set."_

Now time to get the fuck out of -

" _Rerouting."_

" _Rerouting."_

" _Rerouting."_

" _Signal lost. Try again?"_

Rubbing his face, he let out a pathetic whine.

A sudden knock on the window made him jump and glare at the passenger side door. Much to his surprise, he found himself staring at the side of Ino's face. He noticed the large backpack she had on, and the carefree look on her face as she stared at the sky.

His whine only grew louder.

Why him?

Why was he always paired with the borderline insane?

Was him trying to be happy that big of a sin?

Naruto ignored the woman standing outside, opting to instead glare at his phone in hopes of making it work faster. Right now it was struggling to find a signal. Whenever the damn thing could latch onto a bar of strength it would just bring up that stupid error prompt and continue it's search anew. It was infuriating.

He desperately wanted to ignore the blonde woman outside of his car, but he found himself sending her glances every now and then to make sure she wasn't going to break his window, or at least that was what he was telling himself.

Her hands were in her pockets, her weight balanced on her left foot, her gaze uncaring as she stared off into the distance paying Naruto no mind, as she softly knocked the second time.

Surely this crazy woman didn't expect him to actually open the door for her the second time did she?

Another soft knock.

Yeah. Apparently she did.

The only question now was if he was going to let her.

Naruto looked at the windshield, noting the beads of water starting to accumulate.

Christ had he forgotten that there was going to be a rainstorm tonight?

He stared helplessly as the drops of water made contact with the glass in front of him. Slow at first, but before he knew it, a steady stream of water was flooding his vision, so much so that he could barely see three feet in front of him.

Growling, he turned on his wipers and started tapping away at his steering wheel with a tuneless rhythm in mind, trying desperately to figure out what to do. Outside of his car was a woman that caused him nothing but problems in the short time that she graced him with her presence.

He slowly turned his eyes to his right, wondering how the hell the sudden rainstorm didn't faze her in the least. There she was, standing in the middle of a torrential downpour completely care free with her hands in her pockets looking utterly bored, and staring off into space. She was absolutely drenched, but she paid it no mind. Hell if she kept standing out there like an idiot she would catch a fever.

 _Man fuck my life. Fuck it._

Unlocking his car doors, he leaned over and pulled the handle to let the girl in.

He didn't know why he expected her to look at him any differently, so when she gave him that look of indifference he chose to be smart about it and kept his mouth shut, ignoring the feeling of anger bubbling deep within him.

She took off her bag, placing it between her feet as she slammed the door shut. Wordlessly, she looked through the window, looking at the beads of water hitting the glass pane in front of her. He couldn't help but wince at just how drenched she was, absolutely soaking everything her body touched, seats and carpets included.

"Connection re-established."

She looked at him as he let a sigh of relief.

"Listen, I- "Ino finally muttered.

"Shut the fuck up." Naruto mumbled, tired as all hell. He glared at Ino who looked mildly surprised at his sudden outburst. "Just keep your mouth shut and let me do my thing. You want to tag along? Fine, just make sure you keep that mouth of yours shut."

Shifting the car over to drive, he screeched out of the lot and followed the GPS as quickly as he could before it started acting up again. The less time he was in this god forsaken place and back to the main city the better it was for both him and his sanity.

The car sped down the vast, empty roads of Long Island. The four-lane road they were travelling on was eerily quiet, the only sound hitting either of their ears being the heavy rain now pouring down on them. There were lines of trees on either side of the road leading into a pitch-black abyss, a forest that Naruto didn't want to find himself in because he was going to fast during a thunder storm. With that being said, he slowed the car down to a more acceptable level. The only thing giving him peace of mind were the extremely bright LED lampposts scattered every few feet or so, lighting the entirety of the road with bright white.

Normally he wasn't this paranoid with inclement weather, but he wasn't used to showers in quiet neighbourhoods like these being a city local. This area was out of his element, clearly.

His mind trailed back to the events that transpired moments ago in hopes of calming his nervousness, and it seemed to work. The more he recalled, the angrier he got. Before long his fear for the unknown was forgotten entirely, now replaced with simmering rage.

"Black haired fucker. Thinking he's some kind of god and shit." Naruto growled out as he turned out of a corner. "The nerve of the guy. To pull someone out of MY car."

Ino said nothing, but kept her eyes on the driver.

"And that pink haired bitch." He growled.

"What about her?"

The smooth voice brought him out of his ranting almost immediately. Curious he looked over at Ino who was giving him a look he couldn't quite place.

Scowling, he gazed over at his phone and took a hard right, veering the car into the islands miniature highway system that was completely barren much like the local roads, a huge plus for Naruto. Without much hesitation, he put more weight into the accelerator, immediately feeling the car start purring in response as he sped down.

"What about her? How about the fact that she's as loud as a fucking banshee? She screamed into my fucking ear two feet away from me, who does that?!" He screamed.

"Like how you honked your horn trying to scare me?"

He sputtered.

"That's different, can you blame me for trying to be friendly? Besides, you weren't bleeding from the ear!"

Ino thought about it for a moment. He did have a point.

"No…" she found herself agreeing. "I was bleeding somewhere else."

Naruto almost slammed on the brakes, a bright scarlet flush contradicting the angry look plastered on his face.

"Gross dude, too much info."

Now it was Ino's turn to let out a strong blush.

"You moron! That's not what I meant! I meant my chest!"

"Oh?! So moody _and_ sappy. You're a bundle of mystery you know that? Christ, it would have explained it though."

She glared at him.

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"Lady I've driven around your pretentious Long Island folk with money ready to blow hundreds of times over in my days." He stated. "And nobody came quite close to what I had to deal with just now. Nobody."

"And what does that have to do with me?" She demanded.

"Everything! If you weren't so fucking moody maybe we'd be outta' there quicker, before the vampire lookin' bastard and the half-naked cum dumpster ruined my fucking night!" He shot back before he could filter his words.

With a huff, Naruto focused on the road once more, ignoring the stare boring into his side. At this point all hats were off, chances where that she had already given him a negative review. It wasn't like he could make things any worse.

Ino meanwhile wanted to be mad, hell she was actually trying, except, her simmering anger didn't come. Instead of strangling the goofy brat she was stifling her own laughter. Cursing herself, she covered her mouth and stared at the road in front of them.

Naruto didn't miss this at all. Giving her a wary glance, he noticed her trying to control her violent lip twitches as she stared off in the distance, a terrible attempt if he did say so himself. She was far too proud of a person to be caught laughing it seemed.

"Oh look at you, now you're laughing." He muttered. "It's the hormones ain't it?"

Ino gave him an amused snort, which Naruto didn't appreciate in the slightest.

"Stop laughing. You do realize that I'm mad at all of you, like, I can go to my employers and file a complaint." He continued, trying his best to sound convincing.

"And?"

"And I can kick you out right now if I wanted to. Better yet I can charge you extra! Yeah that's right!" He exclaimed, grinning at the realization. "I can claim that you messed up my ride! Which you did! And that vampire of yours busted my ear, who's gonna' cover medical expenses?"

"That's awfully petty of you, and it's just a scratch,"

"Because you're out here laughing! What's wrong with you?! I'm bleeding woman!"

"So? According to you I am too, it's just the hormones, like you said after all."

"I swear to god woman I'm going to…ugh, didn't I tell you to shut your mouth?!" He growled at Ino, getting more furious by the minute. That knowing smirk on her face only made him want to kick her out even more.

"Broads these days." He muttered.

"What was that?" Ino demanded, playful tone gone.

"Nothing. Nothing, Jesus Christ woman."

An idea slowly began to form in her head. A sick, twisted idea, but an amusing one nonetheless.

"You know." She started, casually looking at her fingernails. "If I really wanted to, I could kill the both of us right now off of that ledge there." She stated flatly, casually pointing over to her right.

Curiosity getting the better of him, he peeked over and blanched at the sight. They were currently on their way to the main city, but to get there they needed to pass a bridge that loomed over a body of water, the very same body of water he was currently speeding past.

"Tough talk." He mumbled.

"I'm serious." She mused. "The water is so deep nobody would find us. You know… if we were to suddenly swerve over. And with no witnesses, I doubt anyone would come save us. How cold do you think the water is down there?" she mused. "If the weather is this bad now, imagine how quickly we'd freeze to death if we accidentally fell in?"

Naruto had to admit, he was starting to freak out, just a tiny bit. He could feel his body break into cold sweat, a tingling sensation coursing through every orifice, as unpleasant as it was.

Sure she was a bit weird, but surely she wasn't _actually_ insane, was she?

"You're terrible at lying." Naruto claimed, mentally berating himself for how weak he sounded.

"Is that why you're holding onto that steering wheel for dear life?" She mused, earning a frown from Naruto. "And besides, I have my reasons. Whether it's me dealing with fake friends, or my hormones acting out of control, I think they'd chalk it up as an accident, regardless of how you look at it."

Much to his dismay, he realized how odd the steering wheel looked under his vice-like grip, he was practically crushing the damn thing. Yet no matter how hard he tried to loosen his grip and ease up, every single fiber of his being was yelling at him to hold onto that wheel for everything he was worth.

Judging by the dead serious look she was giving him, it was obvious that she wasn't playing around, that or she was a fucking fantastic liar, as if his sweaty palms and thumping heart hadn't served as any indication.

 _Think._

Yes, he had to think.

What exactly went on there?

So three people. Vampire, cum girl, and the one sitting in his car right now. Surely it couldn't be a love triangle? Were these kids that cliché? Perhaps it was cheating, was she being cheated on? Is she the jealous mistress?

So many questions. He needed to use these to his advantage. He needed to distract her until they got over this damn body of water.

"I'm guessing it has something to do with those two?" he asked, treading as carefully as he could. When she looked at him in question, he quickly looked away, trying to gather his thoughts without her scrutinizing stare. "What I mean is, this whole drama started with those two, right? I mean I'm assuming it has something to do with the pale dude. And the girl, I'm guessing they love each other?"

A bitter laugh interrupted him, as he found himself staring worriedly at Ino. Had he gone too far? Were they going to die?

"Something like that."

He nodded in understanding.

"So where do you come in to play?" He tried, tightening his grip on the steering wheel even further. Not only was he fearing his car 'accidentally' swerving over the highway into damn river, but now he was scared that he was going to break his damn steering wheel, probably resulting in the same fucking thing.

 _Fuck my life man. Fuck it._

"Do people do that?"

He raised a brow, eyes not leaving the road.

"Do people do what?" he asked.

"Vent at their Uber driver like they're some kind of therapist."

"Well only if they're trying to kill their drivers in a fit of depressed rage, yeah?!" He more or less shouted, embarrassed at the way his voice cracked at his sudden outburst.

"Relax Uzumaki. I was just teasing, a little payback for earlier. I wouldn't take you down with me." She mumbled. "I think I did a better job at scaring you by the way."

He in turn frowned as he kept his focus on the road, his vice-like grip on his steering wheel slowly staring to loosen.

 _So she's not actually insane. Apparently._

"Whatever." He stated as he glared at her, trying his best to keep his eyes on the road. "And to answer your question. Yeah, a lot of my clients do. It's part of the reason why I'm so highly rated around these parts. All of you kids need therapy, and I'm the only one here willing to deliver."

Ino snorted at that, staring at the city slowly coming into view on the horizon.

"And don't think I didn't catch that little statement of yours. You're not taking me down with you, but you're thinking of ending it regardless." He stated, catching a flash of surprise from Ino. "I mean suicide, over a guy. Really?"

His question completely blind sided Ino, as she found herself struggling to find words. She hadn't considered her little slip up until he pointed it out.

"You don't know anything about me, or what I've been through."

"Try me." He challenged.

"You're not my therapist. You don't need to be involved with me or my life!"

"Clearly that ship has sailed sister." Naruto growled, angrily pointing at his ear. "Last time I checked, I got decked in the face by that anemic looking fuck, and almost got chewed out by his pink lackey. So honestly? I think I'm a part of this."

Ino contemplated his words, finding truth in his outburst. As much as she hated to admit it, a part of her did feel bad for the drama that this poor fool went through in the act of trying to save her. Sure, he may not be the picture-perfect white knight, but an idiot that cared was enough for her right now. Maybe venting would do her good.

Maybe.

Naruto almost swerved the car over the bridge the moment he felt something warm against his ear. He glared at Ino, who was holding out a warm, damp cloth of some sort next to his face. From here he could see the dried blood on the towel.

"Why is it so warm?" Naruto asked utterly confused, trying his best to focus on the upcoming turn.

"I spit on it."

"Gross!' Naruto found himself screaming, earning a scoff from his passenger.

"Don't be a child, let me clean the wound." Ino mused, trying her hardest to forget the two she had left at home.

"Whatever." Naruto scoffed, as he let her clean the side of his face. "Where are we going anyways? Going home is out of the question it looks like."

Ino, satisfied with her work finally took the cloth off of his face and went back to staring out the window.

"I don't know. I don't go to the mainland too often. I want to go anywhere, just not back home."

Naruto should have been annoyed, but he found himself understanding Ino's predicament. Whatever happened back there, it was clearly chewing away at her. Besides, Naruto wasn't the kind to just drop her off somewhere knowing how weak she was right now. If he ever found out that she did something stupid when he could have done something, he'd never forgive himself for it.

 _Change of plans I guess._

"You know what? We can go to my place. There's this small bar downstairs, I live in the apartments up on top. We can sit at the bar while you tell me the entire story, get it off your chest. Then when you feel better you can fuck off. What do you say?" Naruto asked.

Ino noticed the softer tone. It was clear that he wasn't angry anymore, and his attempt at being sarcastic to lighten up the mood was almost, kind of cute. Would venting to this obnoxious yet oddly comforting stranger do her good? She didn't have the energy in her to muse over her options, but considering the fact she wasn't in a ditch yet chopped up into little pieces, well it was good enough for her.

"Sure. Sounds fine."

With a confident nod, Naruto changed lanes to exit the highway.

"I warn you though _princess_ , the bar isn't the posh five-star bullshit that you rich kids are used to. It's dirty, cramped, and actually has genuine folk that give a shit. I don't think it'd be your cup of tea." Naruto mused.

Ino stared at him with a smirk.

"Sounds fine. Just shut up and take me there."

Naruto let out a chuckle as he continued driving.

 _The kind of shit I do for people._


End file.
